What do you say or do please help

bandit

ok
i think i have the confidence to do some street shots.The problem is what do you say to the person do you say anything at all.
i saw a guy approach someone smoking a big old cigar the gentleman was quite old and would of made a fantastic shot he asked him excuse me sir is it possible to take a picture as i am photographer and you have just given me insparation for a shoot. the gentleman looked at him and shoved his cigar in his face and burned him.

this has knocked my approach to street shots as it makes me very weary of approaching anyone.

so the question is what do you do or say to the person you are shooting that gives a nice respectable approach

lizzard_nyc

bandit wrote: »

ok
i think i have the confidence to do some street shots.The problem is what do you say to the person do you say anything at all.
i saw a guy approach someone smoking a big old cigar the gentleman was quite old and would of made a fantastic shot he asked him excuse me sir is it possible to take a picture as i am photographer and you have just given me insparation for a shoot. the gentleman looked at him and shoved his cigar in his face and burned him.

this has knocked my approach to street shots as it makes me very weary of approaching anyone.

so the question is what do you do or say to the person you are shooting that gives a nice respectable approach

Hi Bandit,
These sound like street portraits .
Mostly I and I think for the most part, people in this forum shoot "street scenes". I try to be unobtrusive, and by approaching anyone for permission I would ruin that and then I'd come away with a posed shot or worse, a big "f u".
So for my part, I do not ask for permission, I shoot and keep walking.

I have seen the occasional street portrait, Michswiss had some great ones, I don't know what her tactic was, but for the most part she shoots "street scenes,captures".

I have also seen on the occasion, some people used a real long lens, which I'm not encouraging
I hope it helps.

Photog4Christ

Sometimes, you can "read" people and tell if they'll be okay with you taking a shot.

I was walking around a pedestrian mall this past fall and there were quite a few people that I wanted to get shots of, but the only lens I own is a 17-55 and I was met with some resistance. As I continued walking, I met a guy playing a harmonica. The "street performers" tend to expect to be photographed, but I asked permission anyway and got this shot:




Oh, and of course I gave him a little something for letting me take his photo.

Richard

bandit wrote: »

so the question is what do you do or say to the person you are shooting that gives a nice respectable approach

I don't ask permission. Most street shooters agree that you do not want people to be aware that they are being photographed so they do not pose for the camera. Many people are uncomfortable with this approach, of course, and street shooting is probably not for them. There are a number of strategies people follow to be unobtrusive and there is no agreement on which is best. A good discussion can be found here.

michswiss

Any time you feel the need to donate after a shot, please think about what you intend to convey to other viewers. It might be a great memory, but I think there's a need to have a sense of purpose when taking shots on the street.

I'll post a couple of shots I took this evening of two delivery blokes in a separate thread. We couldn't actually talk with each other, but we communicated effectively enough. I'd consider it "Complicit Street" in so much as they are fully aware of being photographed, but I'm able to retain some context. I've had angry events too, but even those can settle out if you simply relax and put the camera away and just watch everything happening around you. The people around you won't forget you have the camera, but they'll appreciate that you took the time to simply see what they see without snapping.

As far as street portraits are concerned, they're really fun when the subject engages. Really, really fun. But I've taken my share of ambush head shots too. Sometimes it works really well, sometimes it gets dicey. Just smile and move on. It's a hobby and should be fun.

Otherwise, there's the WTF factor you always need to be prepped for or doing the legwork to understand a set of locations that you'd like to get some shots from.

99% of the time they don't know they are the subject when I snap. Don't ask, but do engage.

Photog4Christ

michswiss wrote: »

Any time you feel the need to donate after a shot, please think about what you intend to convey to other viewers. It might be a great memory, but I think there's a need to have a sense of purpose when taking shots on the street.

....

99% of the time they don't know they are the subject when I snap. Don't ask, but do engage.

Agreed. In the case above I was using a 17-55, so basically, I was standing right in front of the guy. Ideally, I would like to use a 70 - 200 (or even longer!)

bfjr

I smile and just say cheese
It always opens doors


Oh and use a camera that's just a tad stealthy

michswiss

Photog4Christ wrote: »

Agreed. In the case above I was using a 17-55, so basically, I was standing right in front of the guy. Ideally, I would like to use a 70 - 200 (or even longer!)

To be blunt, I don't like the shot you added. And moving further away with a 70-200 is denying any willingness to capture through imagery what you might want to communicate. That you took the original close to the subject is it's one redeeming quality and it's something to build on.

Street isn't about asking permission. It's about being aware and prepared and considerate and open and honest and not manipulative either when taking the shot or after. Respect people and the setting. Be a part of it. Get close, analytically, emotionally, physically (when it makes sense). Enjoy it.

Photog4Christ

michswiss wrote: »

To be blunt, I don't like the shot you added....

Yes, there was some discussion on whether or not that is "street" because of the processing, so I submit this instead:

Richard

Hey guys,

The original question was, "...what do you do or say to the person you are shooting that gives a nice respectable approach?" No need to post shots--we have a whole forum full of them for the OP to enjoy.

Photog4Christ

Richard wrote: »

Hey guys,

The original question was, "...what do you do or say to the person you are shooting that gives a nice respectable approach?" No need to post shots--we have a whole forum full of them for the OP to enjoy.

Sorry

Okay, back to the original topic. In the post above (with the guy giving me the funny look) I was on a photowalk and the guy asked us (a large group of people with cameras) what we were doing, so I engaged him in conversation.